Where It All Started

I love to hear how knitters got started knitting.  I don't think I have ever shared my own story so in the spirit of starting a fresh, clean blog I would like to do that.  You probably know by now that the old blog is kaput.  Dead.  Sadly gone to the land of internet contamination.  

  

Anyway, the story:  as an only child I was accustomed to being alone, listening to music, reading, and playing with stuffed teddy bears and bunnies.  I didn't like dolls.  I had my dog and stuffed toys to feed tea and biscuits and put to bed, each in their own little doll bed with pillow and blanket.  Never could get that dog to stay where I put him, but I digress.

At age nine we moved into a little red brick craftsman cottage across the street from my Mother's closest friend, Stella.  She was Suzy Homemaker.  Stella decorated her little cottage with handmade style.  She sewed the slipcovers for her furniture, hooked the rugs on her floors and was adept at throwing the pots and vases she used to artfully arrange flowers, plants, potpourri, and balls of yarn around the house.  She even knitted the pale pink cashmere sweater that she wore with a black pencil skirt--her trademark outfit.  At nine I wanted to be Stella.

Imagine my joy when she asked Mom if she could teach us (me too!) to knit.  I was deliriously happy and determined to become the best nine year old knitter in the world.  I wanted to make Stella proud of me.  I succeeded but Mom didn't.  It was then that I came to believe that knitters are born not created!  Mom did take to crochet, however, and it became her lifetime crafting love.

Thankfully my Mom took pleasure in buying me all the yarn I could use.  I developed a love for Barbie Dolls and baby dolls when I realized I could knit for them.  Add to that the thrill of discovering that my cranky little dog loved the sweaters I knit for him and I was a busy little knitter!  Even DH, who at nine was my best friend, came to understand that the yarn and I were a unit.  If he wanted a lifetime with the odd little redhead with the needles permanently attached to her hands, he would have to get used to hauling the stuff around and living with it.

We hauled, we lived and I knit through all of it.  So that's how the blog fodder started.  I would love to hear how it all started for you!

Life continues to be good.

Mishmash

My Mother used to call an assortment of unrelated things a “mishmash.” That’s as good a word as any for this post.
Scarves are “where it’s at” at the moment, and since I have two finished, two started and the infamous prayer shawl still waiting in the wings I am well on my way to making this The Year Of The Scarf!

The Noro Silk Garden scarf is a variation on the oh-so popular scarf being made in droves by the knitting community. I, however, have not included the k1, p1 rib in the body, opting to do straight stockinette between borders of seed stitch. It’s turning out beautifully which is saying a lot because I dislike knitting with Silk Garden! Love the colors though!

The white cashmere scarf in an ingenious pattern that knits up fast, and is mindless knitting great for TV watching!

Here is one of my favorite Christmas gifts. It’s from dear DIL#1 in Chicago who knows how much I love/adore THE CUBS. This is a night light that stays plugged in and turned on in the living room. Friends and family who visit and see it (knowing how much I love/adore THE CUBS) just laugh and shake their heads.

Finally, Macy waiting for me, like one dog waits for another, under Mom’s blanky. Life is good!

Motivation Photos

Fair Isle iPod Touch case

Malabrigo scarf

Alpaca lace

Winter Comfort Zone

The Comfort Zone ad in Interweave Knits brings to a close another year of happy knitters discovering the comfort, color and pleasure of knitting with CZ's. Thank you to all of our customers and the repeat customers who have become friends. Thanks for being so vocal about your love of Comfort Zone Needles. Please don't miss our ad in the winter Interweave, one of the best knitting magazines you can buy.

What am I knitting? What are the plans for Christmas? Who is getting what knitted-by-me gift? It's all at The Comfort Zone. Join me there for the knitting fun!

Macy says "Hi."

Hello Again

Here is the summer 2008 Comfort Zone Needles ad for Interweave Knits. Spring is happening here in Texas and summer can't be far behind--considering we are having 80 degree temperatures. I hope you will visit my Comfort Zone blog at www.blog.knittingonthego.com and say hello!

We are growing those CZ needles in so many colors and sizes just for you and your knitting comfort. We've added more nylon to the formula to cut breakage to a minimum, but they are still just as flexible and still just as comforting to your hands during hours of knitting. Come see us and let us know your knitting thoughts. Life is good!

Back For The Moment

It's been a while since I've said hello from this venue. I just wanted to update the face of Knitting Thoughts with the fall 2007 ad photo for Interweave Knits. For the rest of my knitting chatter, please visit me at www.blog.knittingonthego.com for The Comfort Zone where we have been located since the middle of 2006. I hope you will pop by and leave a comment or two. Let me know what you think of the ad photo.

Also, beginning 2008 I will begin adding some free patterns here as a taste of what you will see at The Comfort Zone. Please come back.

Happy knitting!

I'm Not Here!

It has been a while since I monitored this blog. I have moved to www.blog.knittingonthego.com, so please come join me for ongoing Knitting Thoughts, and pictures of knitting projects. I'll look forward to meeting you there!

The Time Has Come

"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--
Of cabbages--and kings--
And why the sea is boiling hot--
And whether pigs have wings."

And also to talk of “Trading Spaces,” because we are “Movin’ On UP.” Okay I’m stopping now!

Yes, the time has come and we are moving the Comfort Zone website AND Knitting Thoughts blog, which will now be known as “The Comfort Zone.” Please visit the Comfort Zone and let me know what you think of the look. Any ideas will be appreciated.

I have committed to posting twice a week to start, and then try to move into daily within the next six months. (It’s good to have goals). I appreciate so much the comments that have been made here, and hope you will bookmark the new blog and comment often.

A lot has been said lately about blogs that don’t get many comments. I am thrilled by every comment I receive, and by “meeting” so many new people over the last two years. Knitters are among the best people in the world. I find most knitters to be calm, clear thinking, goal oriented people, and a pleasure to spend time with. When someone comments on this blog I feel as though I have spent time with that person, drinking a cup of coffee and knitting a few rows. It also gives me the chance to visit other blogs that I might not have found otherwise—and, I have found some good ones! So, please come visit me at The Comfort Zone, and we’ll knit together for a while. Life is good….

How Did Alpaca Get So Cute?

So cute, and so soft. They look like they might be good pets! I bought this brown baby alpaca yarn some time back, not knowing what I would do with it. Last week I ran across a pattern for a scarf/head wrap here, and knew I had to have it, and ordered the turquoise alpaca for the edging. I cast on as soon as the pattern and yarn came in, and immediately discovered that I love seed stitch. Yes, you heard that right, I love seed stitch. There is a nice rhythm to it that almost lulls me to sleep. I have to put it down now and then, and pick up my sock to stay awake. At first I thought it was boredom, but it isn’t that, it is more a peacefulness that comes over me as I switch the yarn back and forth to make the knit and purl stitches.

Knit, purl, knit, purl, isn’t easy for me because I am a thrower. I’ve tried Continental knitting, but it just doesn’t work for me. No, that is not an adequate description—I am Continental method challenged! I have taken two courses from knitting instructors in an effort to learn Continental style, both with no success. My brain and my left hand just don’t work that way. During one lesson I managed to get the yarn irreversibly tangled around the needles and my fingers, and in another session I became so frustrated that I threw my knitting project across the room, and then left quietly before I was asked to leave. I think the problem is that I can’t find a comfortable way to hold the yarn, even though I have tried every finger-winding method there is. When it doesn’t work again and again, the answer is give up and slink back to the English throw—defeated and disgraced. Whenever I knit in public people continue to tell me that I don’t knit as they do, or that I “knit funny.” Yes, yes, I’m just a knitting tragedy. It’s so sad…

Anyway, I love seed stitch!

Yarn Good--Hat Not So Much

Here, finally, is a picture of the red hat—the challenging, demanding, red cashmere blend hat. It looks good on the bear! I would let him wear it, but I think I will take it to Minnesota with me and see if GD#1 likes it. It will look good with her long black hair. I had so much trouble with the sizing on this hat that it has turned me off on tams. After I frogged it and resized with some mean decreases on the top, it turned out to be more of a slouch, but not as pretty as my Le Slouch hat. Not a pattern I will use again! My gauge was right-on, but the finished sizing was way off. It didn’t, however, turn me off on Lion Brand Cashmere Blend. I liked it so much I immediately made another hat with it to get the bad taste out of my mouth. I love this yarn! We’ll see how it washes and wears….

The second hat with Cashmere Blend is pink, cute and holey. I did some k2tog’s and yo’s to give it a little personality, and I like the way it turned out. The pattern will be on the new website (which will launch soon) along with some of my other patterns, all now downloadable as a .pdf file—a neat addition by The Supreme Web Master. If anyone wants it now, just email me at knittykat@sbcglobal.net, and I will send it to you.

Hats are great rainy day knitting projects. Yesterday we had storms with lightning and wind. The second time the computer went down I gave up and turned it off. If you can’t work, what else is there to do but knit? I had just picked up Happy Feet at Costco, so the knitting was in time to the beat. It doesn’t get any better!

Getting There

Never mind....I have just removed a link to my new blog until the person designing the site gets a chance to make it receive comments properly. Thanks Ina for letting me know about the problem.

I have finished the long, brown skinny scarf. Just plain garter stitch in brown Moda dea Cache’ with a sparkly copper thread running through. It is pretty and warm (Minnesota here I come). Also finished the first STR Bunny Foo Foo sock (photos next post), and the red cashmere blend tam as seen here.

O-hhhhh the tam—it did give me such a fight! I followed the “Cashmere Tam” pattern that is going around, and can be found here. Where it says to knit 32 more rows after the rolled band and ten increase rows—big mistake! It was so big that it fell down around my ears and hung down my neck in back. I’m sure there is a rap singer around who would think it is quite fashionable (yeah, I know that’s not the way he/she would say it). For me, I looked like an orphan in a hand-me-down hat. So I frogged, and frogged, and frogged some more. After an hour of rather tightly decreasing the top, it was more to my liking. If I hadn’t been bored to tears—real tears—with the whole project I would have done a more polished job of finishing the top. But I was just glad to close it up and throw it in a drawer. It’s going to take a cool down period before I’m ready to wear it without wanting to rip it apart or dispose of it permanently. Some projects are like that….

I Have My Priorities Straight

Have you ever seen anything like the bendiness in that needle? This is why I love Comfort Zone needles. They bend beyond reason. The second photo shows the same needle resting and straight after its ferocious struggle with my hands while knitting Bunny Foo Foo. It is ready for another fierce row. I have been using this set of size #2s for two years and they still keep ticking along. CZs never leave marks on my fingers, or make my hands ache. Love ‘em!

I am in the throes of a knitting quandary, what to do, what to do. I have only so much time to knit between tax clients, before we leave for GD#1’s college graduation in Minnesota on April 28th. I finished one scarf, but I need the other scarf too, and I need the hat, and I need the socks. I think I can get everything finished, but it is going to require knitting like the wind after April 15th.

I believe DH thinks I’ve been slacking off on the accounting and taxes, but I don’t call it slacking off when I knit during phone calls or after one client leaves and before calling another in. I call it efficient use of time. Also, knitting while doing computer research, and knitting during morning planning meetings is a resourceful use of time, and not the least unprofessional. Geesh, why can’t men get on board with these things? It’s as simple as this, knitting makes me happy and relaxed, and taxes don’t. I wonder if it would seem more acceptable if I knitted an illusion scarf with a picture of a 1040 on it. I’ll have to work on that…right after April 15th.

Hiccupped And Died

That’s what my computer did. It was very sick and its demise was sad. The CD drive stopped working, then the USB ports, then it whimpered through processes until it gave one last hiccup—and drifted away. There is a new, shiny computer in its place, which is also sad in a way. The other had served me well for six years—a long time in computer years!

After the better part of three days reloading all the software in the computer I then discovered Vista…. The word Vista, makes one think of mountains, streams and valleys filled with flowers. Microsoft Vista—not so much. I would like to know who devised this new attempt to finish off what’s left of my mind. I am taking it personally. Microsoft has moved everything, changed everything, made all those things we are used to doing and seeing, disappear at one fell swoop, MacDuff! I can’t even figure out how to insert my Jack Russell Terrier wallpaper, and that’s serious!

Knitting was on the back burner during the struggles with machines. I did, however, finish Rhodonite STR, and cast on for Bunny Foo Foo. I wore Rhodonite today and DH said they are the prettiest pair of socks I have knitted. Just wait until he sees the Bunny. Bunny Foo Foo has become my deliverance in the last few days. What would we do if we didn’t have knitting to relieve stress? Whenever the battle with machine became unbearable, I would pick up Bunny and knit a few rows. This will become known as the war that Bunny won. The knitting is good, and life is good.

Bunny Is In The House

Little Bunny Foo Foo has arrived. I think it is my absolute favorite STR, and that’s saying a lot! Just look at the photo—at the bottom the little belly is fuzzy white, the back is a soft brown, and at the top the ears are pink, to form a perfect bunny yarn. I am finishing the toe of the second Rhodonite sock this evening, and will cast on for Bunny. While I am knitting, I will be thinking of Kathy who is going on a STR fieldtrip this weekend. Can you imagine—a Blue Moon Fibers hunting trip. Kathy, I hope you “bag” a lot of yarn. What fun!

I have also reached another multiple project bottleneck. I currently find myself in the middle of the Oro y Vino scarf, the Flair sweater in emerald Swish, and another Le Slouch hat in red cashmere blend. I really don’t like to hop from one project to another, so why do I do it? I think having yarn around makes me want to knit all of it at once. Also, I just got a new electronic row counter that counts rows on three projects. Well, there you are—I have to have three projects going to see if it works. Right?

I am really pushing to get all three projects and the Bunny socks done before we leave on our trip the end of April. I can do it.

I Did It Again

I said I was finished with hats for a while. But there was this hot pink Louisa Harding cashmere blend yarn sitting on the shelf and I wondered, hmmm, what can I do with that? Immediately my blue hat with the lace edge popped into my mind and I struggled with the idea of knitting yet another hat for all of 30 seconds. I guess it is okay since it is such a quick knit, and I only have three or four projects on the back burner right now, so it seemed like a quick way to destash.

I was supposed to be knitting the Something Red sweater in blue for a KAL, but the sweater is not going to survive I’m afraid. Have you ever started a project that was fraught with problems from the start? A couple of minor mistakes in a project do not put me off, but when every other row contains some deficiency, I have to rethink the whole thing. Something Red in blue was extremely flawed, and I decided that it was better to find another use for the beautiful blue wool. While I was still in the failure funk, knitting a lacy little pink hat was just what the knitting doctor ordered.

I have put the blue wool aside and picked up jade green Swish from Knit Picks to knit Wendy Bernard’s Flair sweater. I feel revived and sure that this project will be a success—and all it took was another hat.

Also nearing completion—STR in Rhodonite, and a skinny scarf in Oro y Vino Malabrigo. And the knitting goes on....

Christmas Year-Round

Blue Moon Fibers Socks That Rock in the Christmas Balls colorway—ultra festive. I used a cute little dippity-doo pattern on the leg called Little Shells by Judy Sumner, from the Yahoo Knitlist group. I also used the STR heavyweight yarn for a change. It was much heavier than I’m used to, and produced a stout, tight weave using size #3 needles. They will be great socks for the winter, but not summer socks by any stretch of the imagination. All of you who live in cold country might want to try this yarn. I guarantee it will keep your feet warm!

So another pair finished and I immediately started STR in Rhodinite, a hot pink and purple blend. Now I am in a hurry to finish the Rhodinite socks because I have just ordered STR in the Little Bunny Foo Foo colorway (chocolate and pink), and I can’t wait to get started. I might even give the Rhodinite socks to DD. How many pairs of pink socks can one woman use anyway?

Other news—I have been working with a web development group to create a new web site for Comfort Zone Needles. The old one has been with the same host for two years and we are finding that it will not perform some of the functions that we want to offer to our customers. The new site will include a new blog, which I hope will stimulate me to post more often (at least every other day). I have been promised that everything will transition seamlessly, and link with the present site and blog for a while. This will all be taking place over the next two to three months, and is more exciting than I can tell you. It would seem to mean that Comfort Zone is growing, and the way needles are flying out the door, I would say it is true! More info as changes occur.

Life is good….

Mélange Malabrigo

First, the last beautiful remnants of Valentine's Day.




And now knitting....


The set is set. What started with the Malabrigo Autumn Forrest hat, ended with a hat, scarf and fingerless mitts set done in a Rojo Intenso and Arrecife Malabrigo combination. This is what I mean when I say, “What I start out with isn’t always what it ends up to be.”

That’s a weird sort of creativity! I discovered, mid-way through the scarf, that the Rojo Intenso was much too bold for the Autumn Forrest. It took something as audacious as Arrecife to stand up. I think the colors blend well, and the hat, scarf and mitts are certainly warm. Because warm was the objective, I’m happy.

I have developed a passion for Malabrigo! It is soft—almost as soft as the cashmere I am using for a pink hat. In addition, it comes in beautiful, exciting colorways. I am 40 inches into a feather and fan scarf using an olive and black variegated Malabrigo. I’m already thinking, “I want to wear this scarf year-round.” It is somewhat amazing to me that a yarn can be so versatile that it lends itself to bulky patterns as well as lace. Surely, it is one of the most versatile yarns around. I once said that I would keep buying Blue Moon’s Socks That Rock until I have a pair of socks in every colorway. Now I have developed the same passion for Malabrigo, and don’t want to stop until I have a knitted item in every color. Maybe I’ll knit a sweater or vest next. I wish you all a lifetime full of STR and Malabrigo!

Pure Elegance

Blocked

Unblocked

This scarf is called, “elegant ribs masquerading as skinny scarf.” It looks good skinny (the way I choose to wear it) or blocked into stylish ribs. I picked up a couple hanks of Malabrigo—my favorite—and started knitting. Many times that has turned out to be a disaster. I’m not a “fly-by-the-seat-of-the-pants” knitter at all. I usually have to have a pattern, or take the time to write out a pattern before I start. This time, when I started knitting I really didn’t know where I was going with it. I just knew I wanted an elegant scarf. I thought, for about 2 seconds, that I would opt for lace, but the yarn is somewhat thick and thin, and gorgeous without fancy stitches. I quickly decided that long and uncluttered would be elegant, so after four rows of seed stitch I started with k3, p3 ribs. I slipped the first stitch of each row, thinking it would help prevent curling. That didn’t work, and I’m glad, because the slight curl on each side contributes to the charm of the skinny form. The longer I worked on this scarf, the more I liked it, and after 70 inches, I was in love. Some days are better than others!

The Christmas Balls STR socks started at the same time are finished too, as well as the hat that goes with this scarf, in a different colorway, and fingerless mitts in the combined colors. The hat and mitts had ends to be woven in, so I will post photos of the “set” next time.

Yes, I have been knitting like the wind! There are only a few months before we leave warm country to go to frigid country. I want to be prepared. There is also the Something Red sweater in blue that is half finished. If I grow wings on my hands, I might be able to finish it too. Is there anything better than having an excuse to spend your free time doing nothing but knitting? Life is good….

Froggy Socks

These socks are TCU Horned Toad purple. I didn’t really knit them to wear at TCU football games, because that would mean I would get to wear them once every couple years, when TCU plays Army (DH’s alma mater) here in Fort Worth. Nope, I had this Monarch Fly Dyed yarn in my stash and decided that everyone needs a pair of purple “Froggy” socks, including me. I wore them yesterday, and when I sat down, and my jeans slid up just enough for my socks to peak through, I thought, “Oh my gosh, those are PURPLE!” To top off this “what-was-I-thinking” experience, I used what I thought was a nice dark blue fingering weight yarn to reinforce the toes. It turned out to be a much brighter marine blue in the harsh light of day. (Darn those fluorescent light bulbs DH has been using in all the light fixtures). I’ve decided it’s about time I bought myself a nice big Ott light! The eyes are not getting any younger.

Speaking of getting younger, lately I have become aware of the amount of junk I purchase every year to stay young looking, and I’ve decided it’s time for me to age gracefully. There have been numerous face creams and scrubs, there used to be the hair dye before the $60,000 haircut, and now there are pastes, gels and goops to spike the fashionably short silver hair. Add to that, all the “young” clothes to stay up with fashions--and considering just the amount of money I’ve spent since January, I should be 20 years younger by now. Okay, I admit it—it’s not working! Besides, youth is a state of mind. My grandkids keep me young, DH’s love keeps me young, and gratitude for just being alive keeps me young! Wrinkles notwithstanding, life is good.

Now for some youth inspiring doggy love…Macy in her stylish sweater, ready to go out and “swing” with the squirrels.

In The Forest

A hat in Malabrigo Autumn Forest. This yarn is so soft and beautiful in the variations. The finished product is quite satisfying—made all the more satisfying when a complete stranger stops you and tells you your hat is “handsome.” I hope that doesn’t mean masculine in appearance!

I’m one of those people who take compliments at face value, and never look for ulterior meanings or concealed messages. I guess that makes me naïve. Maybe that’s a character flaw, not recognizing subtle messages behind others’ statements, but it sure makes life more pleasant. I just keep going—head down into the fray, and more, with a smile on my face. Call it naïve or dense, but it helps me remember that life is good, and people generally are kind.

So, the hat, masculine or not, is going to be part of a set which includes the Malabrigo scarf in Rojo Intenso (next post), and fingerless mitts combining the Autumn Forest and Rojo Intenso. I decided to add the scarf and mitts when I remembered that we are going to Minnesota in late April for GD#1’s college graduation, and I’m sure it will be colder there than it is in Fort Worth in April! My hair is growing back, and I’ve decided to keep it short, but I’ve noticed a distinct chill on my neck this winter. Hat and scarf are a must combination

Pure Heaven

That’s what yarn acquisition is when you are as sick as I was. DH brought home some horrible bug that laid us both out for three days. Forget what they say about 24 hour virus—there’s no such thing! So what do you do from a sprawled position on the couch (with a bucket nearby)? You shop for yarn online, that’s what. That is how I found my new favorite yarn shop PureKnits. I ordered all of the yarn in the photo, except for the Christmas Balls Socks That Rock. The other yarn there is mauve Fable baby alpaca for beaded mitts, Kona Bay worsted for bubblegum pink socks, and Malabrigo in Rojo Intenso for a long, elegant scarf for moi. All of this comes after receiving a skein of Malabrigo in Autumn Forest for a hat, from said Pureknits. Photos of the hat will be forthcoming.

Yesterday I was working, trying to catch up with the backlog from the time I was on my deathbed (or in the bathroom as the case may be), and the Mailman brought boxes with yummy yarn and hope for happy knitting experiences. Wow, I love being a knitter. We get all the goodies!

So let me tell you about PureKnits—they are the greatest! My yarn was received quickly, each package tied with a brown ribbon, and wrapped with brown and coral tissue. A personal, hand written note was included with both orders. It’s so nice to do business with such gracious people. They have a good range of yarns such as Yarntini, Tilli Thomas, Laines du Nord, and their own PureKnits yarn, and the price points are better or equal to other online stores. Truly a case of “try it you’ll like it.”

Six Jaynes and a Jill

Have you ever seen a goofier group? The Jayne Cobb hats were a real hit—probably the hit of the century. Firefighter son (top-second from left) asked for the same hat in black so he can wear it with his turnout gear. The others say they will wear theirs for paintballing and four-wheeling, except for Dad (bottom center) who walks the dog in his, and Brother John (bottom left) who shovels snow off the sidewalk in Chicago in his. Each hat was packaged with a card that bore the original quote from Wash in Firefly, “a man walks down the street in that hat, people know he’s not afraid of anything.” Trust me, this group is afraid of nothing!

The photo should be titled “A rose among the thorns.” The center beauty is DG#2 in her Peruvian Alpaca hat that will keep her ears warm in Ireland, where she went when she left us here in Fort Worth. Big change in weather for her.

On another subject, I met a woman in Hobby Lobby this morning. She watched as I picked up two crochet hooks that I will use to pull yarn through beads on the beaded mitts I am planning to knit. She asked if I crochet. I answered that I know how to crochet, but that I mostly knit. She showed me a beautiful crocheted scarf she was wearing and said that she has decided that she wants to “do that.” I commended her, saying she has chosen a relaxing and very rewarding art. She frowned and said, “Oh I’m not an artist. I just want to do something with my hands, and have it look like this scarf.” Okay, here I am again—the utilitarian art advocate. I assured her that producing a beautiful product using ones hands and any medium—oils, acrylic, paper, wool—is most definitely art! She frowned a little, but then said, “If that’s true then I want to be an artist. Would you help be gather the things I will need?” And I did. I left Hobby Lobby thinking about the fact that another artist has been added to our flock, another person who will enjoy the peace, tranquility, and accomplishment of crocheting and/or knitting. Though we are many, there simply are not enough of us!

Very, Very, Very Rewarding

Christmas was everything the commercials say it should be! Family flew in from Chicago, GKs couldn’t wait to open gifts (had to be subdued with an opening on Christmas Eve), GD#2 watched with me as GD#3 sang and danced across the stage in Chronicles of Narnia, and everyone laughed, talked and ate too much. All fourteen of us took up a row in Church on Christmas Eve for the candlelight service. I love that!! It has become a tradition for all of us to go together. Then we come back to the tree and gifts and resume the eating, laughing and talking, before falling into bed for a long winter’s nap. Probably not too different from thousands of people across the country. It’s the American way.

The photo is of Irish dancer, GD#2 (No. 5 in world competition) in my new Le Slouch. The pattern is by Wendy Bernard. It’s free, and can be found here on Wendy’s blog, Knit and Tonic. She liked the hat so much that I had to knit her one while she was here. Since she is from Chicago, and is a diehard Bears fan, I had to knit the hat in navy and orange, and add a Bears patch from the NFL store.

The Christmas knitting was a success. I’ll post a picture in the next few days of all the men in their Jayne Cobb hats—the hit of the century.

I hope all of you had as wonderful a Christmas as we did! It went by fast, and the New Year is approaching the same way. Soon we will be writing 2007, and the rest will be history. Life is good!

Do You See What I See

I never thought I would see it! When my grandson asked me if I could do illusion knitting, while we were watching Knitty Gritty together one day, I said, “Sure, I can do that—how hard can it be?” Then he told me he would like to have an illusion lizard scarf for Christmas.

I joined the illusion knitting group and asked if anyone knew of a lizard chart. Bless Crystal, who sent me one immediately. However, I found the knitting tedious, due to the small chart. I was going blind counting stitches on the teeny-tiny chart until DH sat down over the weekend and converted it to written instructions. He put everything on an Excel spreadsheet, increased the font to 16 pts, and presented all 14 pages of written pattern to me with a kiss. I love that man! The rest is lizard….
This is what the scarf looks like just hanging around—black and olive stripes. I think it will be a hit with the young man. It was not, however, a knitting hit with me! As I said, I found it mind-numbingly tedious, and when the pattern is finished, straight-stripe knitting is not my idea of scarf knitting. Give me lace, give me seed stitch, or k1, p1 ribs, but straight knitting for 60 inches is worse than ho-hum! I am having to switch knitting sessions with an interesting lacey, skinny scarf for DIL in a chocolate wool with a copper thread running through. I also took time to cast on for the last Jayne Cobb hat in the middle of a l-o-n-g straight-stripe knitting session last night.

I’m beginning to believe that I will finish the Christmas knitting a week early this year. It’s going to happen! Life is good—and Christmas is magic.

Just Sayin....

I received a nice complement on another blog a few days ago. Someone wrote that my bind off on the “Fetching” mitts was very “neat.” I looked at the picture again and considered why it looks so neat. And so ensues yet another of my off-the-wall theories, and even more off-the-wall advice.

When the pattern says, “Bind off in pattern,” as this pattern does, I mostly ignore those instructions—across the board! I did try to bind off in the rib pattern, and it didn’t look right to me. Due to the comment about the bind off being “neat,” I realized that there are two ways to look at this subject:

Whenever I want the pattern carried all the way to the end of the knitting so it is decorative, I bind off in pattern. But when I want a nice clean line that doesn’t wave, curl, or generally get in the way, I bind off straight as I did with “Fetching.”

Another tip I might share is always use a size larger needle to bind off. Then there is no tight edge to your mitts, or hat, or whatever. I also cast on with a size larger needle to give stretch to the edge. Just sayin….

I can’t stop without sharing my latest FO’s which are, or course, TA-DA—hats. Am I in a rut, or what? These are legal though—I said I wasn’t going to make any more hats for me. These are Christmas gifts, so they don’t count among the umpteen thousand I have made for my finally-growing-hair head.

I made the green hat using the old standard Jayne Cobb pattern. I am also making four in the original orange-beige-burgundy Jayne hat colors. I will package them with a card bearing the quote from Wash in Firefly, “A man walks down the street in that hat, people know he’s not afraid of anything.” Can’t wait to see the reactions on Christmas morning!

And, so goes the knitting. I plan to make more frequent postings a New Year’s resolution. I hope it goes better than most of my resolutions go!

Never Say Never

I said I wasn’t going to make anymore hats, but when you have as little hair as I have right now, and it is beginning to get cold outside (This is Texas—60’s is cold to me), what do you do? You make hats. This one is done in a strange soy yarn called Wick, and while pretty with its bright blue, and gold variegated colors, it is not warm. This yarn would make great summer tanks and tops, but I can’t think of much else it would be appropriate for. Don’t try it for gloves or mittens (or hats!). On second thought, it would make great gloves and mittens for people who don’t find 60 degrees particularly chilling. While you are still laughing at me for wearing hats and gloves in 60 degree weather, I’ll explain that when it is 102 degrees outside and I am working in an air conditioned office, I wear fingerless mitts and a sweater. Yup, it’s sweaters for me year-round.


Speaking of fingerless mitts, here’s a pair that I just finished for a Christmas present. I love this cute cable pattern from Knitty.com called Fetching, and have made two other pairs of these mitts for myself.

I am also working on a “slew” (that’s more than one, and less than a dozen) of cammo hats for the paintball crew in the family—who are many! I was going to edge them in orange, but the men all chimed in to say, “No! You can’t put orange on the hats. That will make us targets.” I guess what I know about the game of paintball you could put through the eye of a tapestry needle! Of course, none of them know the difference between dpns and circs.

Back to Christmas knitting. That orange yarn is calling out to me. Hmmm, maybe an orange pompom….

Tip Of The Day

A Comfort Zone customer gave me a great tip today. RB in Massachusetts said she wears Gold Toe socks under her hand knitted socks. It makes them wear longer, and I would bet they are warmer as well. She also said that Macy’s has a store brand named “Hue” that works as well. I’m talking about light weight, white socks that are smooth and comfy under your knitted socks, and take the impact of toe and heel abuse. I’ve never tried that, but I do reinforce the toes of all my socks—sometimes with reinforcing thread, and sometimes with fingering or sport weight yarn in a contrast color.

Another long-life tip for knitted socks is washing them in Eucalan. That is miracle stuff! It smells good, makes your knits feel soft, and you don’t rinse it out, but leave it in your woolens for conditioning and long wear. All too often knitted objects are beautiful for only a short time, and with any wear and tear are too soon no longer useful. I have socks with reinforced toes that have lasted for three years now. Others, without the reinforced toes, have gone bye-bye in less than a year. So why not do everything we can to preserve our precious knitted objects.

Regarding miracles, even better than Eucalan, I received word yesterday from my Neurosurgeon that my latest MRI shows that the blood left in my head from the subdural hematoma has redistributed or absorbed. That means I will not have to have more surgery right now! We will watch it for the next six months to a year, but for now I’m home free—literally! Thanks to all my friends who sent good wishes and for all the prayers. They worked! Life is good.

BTW, the Nasturtium socks are finished.

It's Official

I am making it public record that I now have too many projects started and it will be well into 2007 before I finish them. I finished the felted mittens, and am finishing the second Nasturtium sock. Then I started the blue top-down sweater—the one that used to be Debbie Bliss’ Classic Jacket until it morphed into a top-down sweater while sleeping in my knitting basket. Then I decided that I need at least two more pair of warm, worsted wool socks for winter, because my feet are already cold. So, I cast on for the socks with Paton’s Classic Wool in olive. Before I could count all the projects and "get a grip," I was bitten by the hat bug again and started another one with a 50% soy yarn called Wick. AND I am still working on DD’s Buttercreme Shawl. Now I am jumping from one thing to another, hoping I will eventually decide that one of them is a priority.

Do you ever flit from one project to another? I know knitters who knit one thing at a time and stick with it until finished. I have fallen asleep in the middle of projects like that! I guess I am easily bored, so the jumping and flitting keeps me awake, and makes knitting interesting. I do like to finish things, but I also like variety. I have decided that I am going to knit two socks at a time from now on. I don’t use circs or magic loop, so I will have to have two sets of dpns going at once. The way I have it figured, I will knit the ribbing on both, then the leg on both, then the heel—and so on.

The worsted wool socks are my old standby pattern of cast on 48 stitches, knit four inches of K4, P2 ribbing, then start the heel. I add a second color to the toe with lace or fingering weight yarn, to both reinforce and add contrast. I think I will use yellow on the olive socks. The blue sweater is a standard top-down pattern that I am making up as I go along. I will do a sketch and write down the pattern as I knit, so I can share later.

When I think about it—what could be better than having too many knitting projects? It means that I’m going to have to spend a lot of time knitting, and less time on other, not so pleasant things. Life is good!

Felted Warmth For Christmas

This is one humongous mitten in its present state, but it is going to be felted as soon as its partner is finished. These are a Christmas present for a family member who shall go unnamed because my family reads my blog. Pretty-felted-periwinkle-mittens. Go guess, all of you, until Christmas. These are another of my knit-in-an-afternoon projects. I seem to be caught in a cycle that is productive, but leaves longer projects like my socks and sweater projects unattended. Good or bad—I don’t know. It does, however, get Christmas knitting started with a bang!

Ahhhh Christmas knitting, or Christmas shopping of any kind. Is there anything in the whole world that is more fun and more of a pain at the same time? I certainly have a love/hate relationship with the planning and buying of Christmas gifts. Does it ever seem to you that the thing you want to buy for a certain person, that thing that you know is perfect, and that special person MUST have, is never received with the same enthusiasm with which it was chosen? I confess that I am a failure—a total flop at buying gifts. They say (you know, the infamous “they”), that you should choose the thing you want to give the other person, and it will be perfect. I don’t think it works that way—at least it doesn’t for me. Therefore, I have to set about ferreting out what the person really wants of Christmas.

“Honey, what do you want for Christmas.”
“Oh, I don’t know. Just anything.”
“Surely there is something special you want.”
“Uhhh, I can’t think of anything right now.”
“Will you tell me when you think of something?”
“Oh sure! If I think of something I will.”

They never do! I’m doomed to failure for another year. But Christmas is wonderful anyway, and life is good.

Warm Heart

I don’t know about the warm heart part, but my hands are always cold. I have a drawer full of fingerless mitts, mittens, and gloves. Muffs are next—right after I finish this oh-so-cute pair of cabled mitts. These are from a pattern on Knitty.com that I have been eager to try. So, before I start the Debbie Bliss Classic Jacket, which mysteriously turned into an in-the-round raglan sweater in my knitting basket, I thought I would do a quick knit on the mitts. I have had an infatuation with knit-in-an-afternoon projects for the last few weeks. Now it is time to get back to serious stuff like socks and sweaters.

I’m still working on the Nasturtium socks. Sock number one is approaching the toe. The hats, followed by the cabled mitts, got in the way of sock knitting for a time. I can hear the poor neglected little things crying in the knitting basket at night. So this morning I worked on the first sock until I was ready to start the toe, and then cast on for the second sock. That should make them happy.

I, on the other hand, am not happy at this moment. I have cast on for the raglan sweater twice, and had the stitches twisted when I joined them both times. Is there some easy way to make sure that doesn’t happen? The last time I put the stitches on the circular on the table and smoothed them carefully until I was sure they were not twisted. After four rows of k3, p2 rib I could see there was something wonky—240 wonky stitches! I cried! I hate to be beaten, so I will try again, but I’ll tell you something—it does take a brave heart to tackle a troublesome project like this for a third time. Like I said, I don’t know about the warm heart part, but it is certainly brave!

That Will Do

I am far from being a perfectionist. As the mother of six children I learned early that “okay” would suffice, and “perfect” took entirely too long to accomplish before one of the kids had to be at baseball or dance practice. This position has been reinforced by my recent surgery. I’ve gone from “okay” to “that will do.” I hate to admit it, but this transfers to my knitting. I mentioned the “out of kilter” ribs on my current sock, and my feeling that frogging it was just not something I wanted to do. AND since the socks are under my jeans and the tops are not often seen, “that will do.”

I liked the lace-edged head hugger hat I just finished so much that I took an afternoon to knit another out of leftover STR Lemongrass yarn. When I say “leftover” I mean the tiny amount that is left from a whole pair of socks for my size 10 feet, which is not much I’ll tell you! I looked at the tiny skein and said, “that will do.” So I knit and I knit, and when I got to the decrease rows for the crown I had a ball of yarn the size of a walnut left, and I said, “that will do.” I did the decrease rows, tied off, and the picture shows how much yarn was left. Yes, I know, I was lucky, and I don’t think I would try that again. However, it was exciting to race against the end of a skein of yarn and win.

The hats are so much fun to wear that I decided I had to make another one. Somebody stop me! This one is in red Simply Soft--not the world's greatest yarn, but fun to knit with because it is so soft. I made up the pattern as I went along, but I didn't write it down. So, I had to make another one so I could capture the pattern and post it on the Knitting-On-The-Go website. And h-e-r-r-r-e it is....


Four hats! (counting the first blue hat). I'm in a serious hat knitting rut here! At least my head won't be cold this winter. That will do!